In Winston’s Words: “My Thought Process Is To Play”

Bucs quarterback Jameis Winston held his weekly press conference as he does each and every week and PewterReport.com provides a full transcript. Here is what Winston had to say on Thursday from One Buc Place.
(On if he plans to throw in practice)
“I’m just following the plan that they have for me in the training room. It’s a day to day thing. I don’t really know. Whatever they tell me when we go out there.”

(On if it’s painful even when he isn’t throwing)
“Not really. I think it’s just—I don’t know. I guess it’s just a joint. I can’t really describe it.”

(On what it’s like taking mental reps instead of throwing)
“I think it’s great that Ryan (Griffin) is back. I’m happy he was able to step right in and get those reps. That is all we do, Coach Bajakian and I. Most of our practice, when everyone else is doing reps, we’re taking mental reps all the time. Nothing is different besides live reps.”

(On if he has every played in a game where he didn’t throw much during the week)
“I can’t remember.”

(On if he treats it like a Thursday game due to limited reps)
“I don’t know. I’m just ready. When it’s time, when they let me go, I’m ready.”

(On when he dealt with an injury like this before)
“My football career. I’ve had a couple AC joints that I had to play through. So, I’m used to the pain. Everyone is different. I can’t tell you about my injuries eight years ago. I can just tell you about this one.”

(On if throwing with high velocity is his main concern with injury)
“The biggest concern is my shoulder. It’s not really about the passes and making the throws. It’s just the pain, that’s all. This is a long season. That’s the biggest thing. This is a long season.”

(On his thought process)
“My thought process is to play. That’s my thought process. I’m going by what they tell me. I’m going by working together and we’ll see what happens.”

(On how decision will be made if he plays)
“It’s a joint decision. Everybody is going to have their say. Ultimately whatever happens on Sunday, happens.”

(On when decision will be made)

Bucs QB Ryan Griffin – Photo by: Mary Holt/PR

“I don’t know. I don’t know. I can’t tell you.”

(On Fitzpatrick being disappointed he couldn’t get the win for him)
“We probably spend more time together in that quarterback room than a lot of people spend their whole year together. We definitely developed a great relationship. With him being here and doing everything that I could possible dream of in this league, I think it’s just great to have a guy like that to look to, to go to for guidance, and be able to lean on. He knows that I’m there for him as well. Of course he wanted to get that win. He’s from Arizona and that had a big part behind it. He played his tail off. I’m kind of surprised to hear him say that he felt like he disappointed me. He didn’t. He played his balls of.”

(On how hard it is not throwing and going through same routine)
“This game is such a mental game. As long as I’m getting mental reps. I’ve been throwing the football practically my whole life, so I know I can throw. I just think that it’s about recovery right now. It’s about being consistent in my reads and in progressions. That’s the most important thing.”

(On what he sees in McDermott’s defense and if it’s similar to Carolina’s defense)
“Very similar schematically. The Bills have a great team. Their defense swarms the ball. They’re aggressive. They’re what I call head busters. They swarm around the ball and try to knock it out. That’s fun. It’s fun when you see a team that has that. I don’t know if they have a chip on their shoulder because they have some pretty impressive wins. But it’s fun to see a team that plays the game like that—all out.”

(On best part of Bills defense)
“Effort. Their overall team effort. When you think about defense that is what defense is all about, guys swarming to the football. They perfect that.”

(On if they have a chip on their shoulder from loss last week)
“Every week I’m coming with a chip on my shoulder. I think the biggest thing for us is to come out of the gate fast and come ready to play. I think that we are capable of doing great for the remainder of the season. This is the game that we have next. We have to be prepared and come out there and start fast on their home field. We have to bring it. We have to bring our own energy.”

(On treatment staff)
“I’m so grateful for Bobby in there in that training room. Those guys work their tail off to get us back. You look at Lavonte. We didn’t know where he would be and those guys worked their tail off. He committed to his treatment and he got back sooner than we thought. Hopefully other people will be coming back this week to join us. Right now mental reps and getting my shoulder right—treatment, treatment, treatment, is what I’m focusing on. When Sunday comes we all will know.”

(On if offense feels some responsibility for loss)
“I feel responsible because as a team we all take an L. No matter how we get a loss or a win, as a team collectively we all play a significant role in that loss. It’s not the defense and it’s not the offense or special teams. It’s all of us together.”

About the author

Mark Cook currently is the director of editorial content and Bucs beat writer and has written for PewterReport.com since 2011. Cook has followed the Buccaneers since 1977 when he first began watching football with his Dad and is fond of the 1979 Bucs team that came within 10 points of going to a Super Bowl. His favorite Bucs game is still the 1979 divisional playoff win 24-17 over the Eagles. In his spare time Cook enjoys playing guitar, fishing, surfing and family time at the beach. In addition, Cook can be found in front of a television or in Doak Campbell any time the FSU Seminoles are playing. Cook is a native of Pinecrest in Eastern Hillsborough County and has written for numerous publications including the Tampa Tribune, In the Field and Ya'll Magazine. Cook can be reached at [email protected]

For strategic reason alone I would be shocked if he’s ruled out. Plus is Griffin even cleared all the way?

At any rate you want to keep the Bills uncertain about who going to start.

I think Winston will start if he’s not doing well they will pull him. This isn’t the kind of pain that easy to deal with because it goes from nothing to intense depending on if he puts pressure on the injured area. On some throws there may be no pain at all on other it’s sharp and intense. Just going by the replay and how he landed it likely will hurt as he extends back and right as he releases. It all comes down to his pain tolerance and how much pain he feels, at very least it will be a detraction for him.

Honestly the QB position isn’t my biggest concern going into this game. Fitz show he’s good enough, the defense on the otherhand is on the fast track to worst in league. We are nearly there vs the pass and we were scorched last week vs the run. This is a statistically better team that we are facing and I don’t feel good about our chances. We have under performed this whole season so far.

This is a really tough call to make. I’d say after his performance last week, let’s roll with Fitz and have Jameis ready to go on the sideline just in case. I’d hate to see Jameis go out there and get injured further and be sidelined for a longer period.

Fitz showed against Arizona that he is a capable backup. Let Jameis rest up and be back at 100% hopefully in a week.